2017

The ITF is proud to work with 29 grantee partners in 23 countries across the globe. You can learn about their work here.

Alliance of Trans* Activists of Russian LGBT Network (Russia)Alliance of Trans* Activists of Russian LGBT Network was founded in 2016 and unites activists from 12 regions of Russia: Moscow, St Petersburg, Samara, Voronezh, Yekaterinburg, Novosibirsk, Tyumen, Krasnodar, Rostov-on-don, Murmansk, Omsk and Perm. The organization’s goal is to improve the current situation for trans people and protect trans rights in Russia. They aim to ease the process for legal gender name change and seek to fill the gaps in information within service providers around trans issues. The Alliance plans to develop a strategic approach to solving issues affecting trans persons and increasing trans visibility and awareness. In addition, they plan to support trans groups emerging in the region with no or limited experience in activism and organizational development through trainings and meetings.

ALMA-TQ Initiative Group (Kazakhstan)ALMA-TQ Initiative Group was founded in 2014 in Kazakhstan. Their mission is to contribute to the strengthening of LGBTI groups to defend their civil rights and equal opportunities by means of support, mobilization, capacity-building, partnership-building, advocacy and education. They work on discrimination, legal gender recognition, health of trans persons, community mobilization and advocacy empowerment. They will engage in organizational development while providing community and social support, assisting with legal gender recognition and health referrals and expanding the reach of the group.

ASTT(e)Q – Action Santé Travesti(e)s et Transsexuel(le)s du Québec (Canada)ASTT(e)Q was founded in 1998 by a group of HIV+ trans women in Montréal, Canada. They promote the health and well-being of trans people through peer support and advocacy, education and outreach, and community empowerment and mobilization. They advocate for access to healthcare that will meet the many needs of diverse communities, while working collectively to build supportive, healthy and resilient communities. ASTT(e)Q maintains a dual mandate of directly supporting trans people living in precarity while simultaneously fighting for economic, social, institutional and medical justice. ASTT(e)Q provides one-on-one support and accompaniment to participants, facilitates workshops across the city, responds to queries and coordinates and facilitates the weekly drop-in and monthly community dinners.

Bilitis Resource Center Foundation on behalf of T.I.A.org (Bulgaria)The group T.I.A was formed in 2015 from a social media campaign where they made information related to trans issues accessible in Bulgaria. Their mission is to achieve equality and non-discrimination of trans and intersex people, access to adequate healthcare and free and fast administrative procedure for gender recognition, based on self-identification. They will begin offline activities for trans self-empowerment, including topic-based discussion events and workshops, which will engage trans people in sharing information. They will facilitate meetings for young trans and non-binary people and produce a wide range of resource materials. They will also conduct a needs assessment of the trans movement, goal setting and planning specific actions.

Colectivo de Hombres Trans Trans-Formacion de Guatemala (Guatemala)Colectivo de Hombres Trans Trans-Formacion de Guatemala was founded in 2013 and it is the first collective of trans men in Central America, formed by transgender and transsexual men from across Guatemala. Their mission is to promote trans men’s rights and empower the community for visibility, combating stigma and discrimination. They work on education, research, health and international advocacy in order to create visibility for trans men. They work directly with the trans community to provide legal support for trans people in name change applications and monthly health checks.

Cólectivo Intercultural TRANSgrediendo (CIT) (United States)The Cólectivo Intercultural TRANSgrediendo (CIT) was founded in 2008 and is led by trans Latinx immigrants, many of whom are sex workers, in Queens, New York. They promote respect for gender identity and seek to reduce acts of discrimination through the implementation of trans-specific, trans-inclusive and trans-directed initiatives. CIT promotes education strategies which are focused on achieving leadership from the community, for the community. They have an emphasis on empowering, educating and sensitizing trans latinx to be community leaders. They will train 6 members of the community to become peer educators and will hold educational workshops every two weeks to reach and train 100 trans latinx people on issues relating to the prevention of gender based violence, legal and human rights and access to healthcare.

Gender Minorities Aotearoa (Aotearoa / New Zealand)Gender Minorities Aotearoa (GMA) was founded in 2014 and is a cross cultural, transgender led organization. GMA’s mission is to create a credible, consistent, evidence-based, and trans-led national organization that is inclusive of sex workers, HIV+ trans people and/or Maori. GMA assists transgender, intersex and takataapui people in having choices about their lives and their bodies, and in getting the things they need for well-being. GMA will open their first drop-in Gender Centre, in conjunction with a second-hand clothing store/Op Shop, in Wellington city. The op shop will fund their work, including covering personnel costs, operational costs and program costs.

Horizontale Versatile (Tunisia)Horizontale Versatile was founded in 2016 and is an emerging association of trans/non-binary/gender fluid people in Tunisia. Their mission is to open access to knowledge by broadening the spectrum of professional choices for trans and sexually non-normative people. They seek to change Tunisian laws that criminalize homosexuality and the trans community. Horizontale Versatile has members in Tunisia and France as several members have had to ask for asylum since the revolution. They will create a graphic charter, a website, set up the training team and deliver a training program.

HT Apolo (Nicaragua)HT Apolo was founded in 2016 and works in the west zone (Chinandega and León) and Managua, Nicaragua. They seek to promote trans rights and use a feminist-based approach of redefining masculinity and anti-violence towards women. They work on issues related to healthcare, identity laws for trans recognition, labour advocacy and human rights. They will work and meet with trans men in inaccessible/remote areas and produce media materials to promote visibility and raise awareness about trans masculinities.

Institute Transfeminist Initiative TransAkcija (Slovenia)Institute Transfeminist Initiative TransAkcija was founded in 2014 in Slovenia. Their mission is to address the needs of transgender and gender non-conforming persons holistically, aiming for justice for people of all genders. They work to address human rights, develop and enhance the transgender and gender non-conforming community, address legal and systemic erasure of transgender and gender non-conforming persons from legislative and social structures, raise visibility and awareness of trans issues, support transgender people and enable the empowerment of trans lives. TransAkcija’s central political stances are intersectionality, solidarity and norm-criticism which addresses systems of oppression and power relations. They will increase of capacity and empowerment of transgender individuals and the community by involving them in the organizational development of TransAkcija. They will continue to maintain and develop support systems, advocate for legal gender recognition, host visibility and awareness events and develop resources.

Irish Trans Student Alliance (Ireland)The Irish Trans Student Alliance (ITSA) was formed in 2013 in Ireland and is a peer-support group for students and young people (18-30) who are trans, gender variant, intersex, questioning or exploring their gender identity. They offer online peer support and social events to trans youth across the country, including in rural areas, to share experiences, make friends and seek advice. Their mission is to bring together young trans people across the island of Ireland. They work towards being able to provide support for every young trans person after they finish in youth services and/or second level education as well as creating a network of trans people in universities/colleges throughout Ireland. They focus on leadership building of trans youth and trans students and seek to amplify the voices of trans youth in movement building. ITSA will conduct a five-day workshop for 70 participants, which will include peer support and the promotion of trans youth in leadership.

Jinsiangu (Kenya)Jinsiangu was formed in 2011 and is an organization for and by intersex, transgender and gender non-conforming (ITGNC) persons in Kenya. Their mission is to create safe spaces for ITGNC persons through provision of health services, psychosocial support, advocacy and education. They put special emphasis on health and psychosocial well-being, but also on the promotion of legal rights. They plan to open a resource centre and conduct stakeholder forums, host meetings and convening to push for policy review and implementation, outreach and sensitization campaigns in various counties across Kenya and develop entrepreneurship programme.

Modern Awareness Society (MAS) (India)Modern Awareness Society (MAS) was founded in 2004 in the Warangal district of Telangana, India. Their mission is to work towards collectivizing the trans community in order for them to access their rights and entitlements. MAS does this through strengthening itself as a collective, building support among progressive organizations and advocating with various institutions and agencies to battle the discriminatory attitudes and behavior. MAS engages in alliance building, continually offering solidarity to women’s groups and groups representing other minority communities, and creates networks with youth leaders by calling for them to participate in social and cultural events held by MAS. They seek to increase and bolster family acceptance, conduct health awareness camps, provide a crisis intervention program and engage in educational development.

Northeast Transgender Support Network (NETSN) (China)Northeast Transgender Support Network (NETSN) is an organization formed in 2014 in northeast China, which mainly serves young transgender people, transgender people living with HIV and transgender sex workers. Their mission is to promote empowerment, education, visibility, HIV prevention and legal advocacy for trans persons. They advocate for equal medical rights, vocational rights and sexual rights of transgender people, and help young transgender people to achieve a better self-identification and self-confidence. They organize healthcare-related workshops and trainings, sexuality education trainings, NGO capacity building trainings and legal aid trainings. They seek to empower the transgender community and build individual capacity, engage in the cultivation of trans activists and groups and promote legal education and advocacy to eliminate trans oriented discrimination.

OTRANS Argentina (Argentina)OTRANS Argentina was formed in 2012 in La Plata, Argentina. They have expanded their work to the city of Buenos Aires and the Malvinas Argentina district. Their mission is to encourage, strengthen and promote the human, political, social, economic and cultural rights of trans, transsexual, transvesti and transgender people in Argentina. Many of the individuals they work with are migrants and sex workers. The organization not only creates projects for public policy (employment, housing, health, education) but they also fight against persecution and criminalization by the Argentine judiciary, different armed forces and abuse by the penitentiary service. They will engage in organizational development, expand the reach of the organization and provide labor grants to trans people in sex work seeking alternative means of survival.

Ouest Trans (France)Ouest Trans was formed in 2015 in the region of Bretagne, France. Their mission is to help build solidarity between trans people and to create a link between trans people and relevant institutions. The organization is divided between being a support group and actively working to create a healthcare network welcoming trans people. They will continue to develop support groups, organize a symposium on trans health rights and build a network of healthcare providers by facilitating a training on healthcare with medical specialists from Paris that work with trans persons.

Queerstion Media (Sweden)Queerstion Media was founded in 2016. Their mission is to amplify the voices, celebrate and increase visibility of transdiverse people of color in Sweden and Sub-Saharan Africa, leveraging alternative, secure and healthier platforms to connect, inspire and organize their activism. The organization is run by transdiverse people of color (TPOC) who are mostly from Southern Africa and are refugees in Sweden. They will create online and offline spaces to network, mentor, share best practices and exchange skills to strengthen movement building. Virtual Queerstion Magazine is a one-stop information hub, community building platform and alternative space for advocacy, data collection and archiving of trans*diverse narratives from Sweden to Sub Saharan Africa. They will also be conducting activities related to safety and security, well-being, cultural exchange and social integration.

Red Umbrella Sexual Health and Human Rights Association (Turkey)Red Umbrella Sexual Health and Human Rights Association was established in 2013 with the intention to create awareness and visibility on the human rights violations of trans people and sex workers in Turkey. Their mission is to advocate for the betterment of the sexual health and human rights situation of trans people and sex workers through empowering the community and carrying out advocacy actions towards various relevant stakeholders. Red Umbrella will build the capacities of trans people to enable them to find ways to access formal and registered employment opportunities, increase the knowledge and information of public officials regarding the issues and needs of trans people who are discriminated against in the employment sector and create visibility and awareness within society regarding the issues and needs of trans people in the employment sector.

Samabhabona (Baishammya Durikoron Samiti) (India)Samabhabona was formed in 2007 and aims to address intersectionality and various forms of oppression including class, caste, gender and race through sensitization. They believe in creative and accessible ways of activism that reaches trans and queer persons with less literacy privileges through art and stories. Samabhabona provides legal awareness to communities on laws impacting trans lives, offers translation of advocacy materials in local languages for accessibility of non-English speaking individuals, develops skills based training for trans people with no computer skills, provides sensitization programs in schools to reach out to trans students facing mental health issues due to stigma as well as engages with ministries to support trans and queer rights.

Samoa Faafafine Association Incorporated (Samoa)Samoa Faafafine Association Incorporated (SFA) was founded in 2006 in Samoa. It is an indigenous trans organization that has represented Samoa’s Fa’afafine (assigned male but identify and live culturally as females) and fa’afatama (assigned female but identify and live culturally as males). Their mission is to strengthen the involvement and participation of every Samoan Fa’afafine and fa’afatama in all essential areas of society by building their capacity physically, mentally, socially and spiritually to best serve their own, their families and Samoa’s needs. SFA will work with the Asia Pacific Transgender Network (APTN) to facilitate a Blueprint Workshop (a comprehensive guideline on the provision of non-discriminatory and gender affirming health) and International Classification of Diseases (ICD) workshop. This will build the capacity of SFA to 1) advocate for the implementation of best practice guidelines in treating transgender people, work with health facilities to reduce stigma and discrimination at healthcare facilities and increase access to gender affirming health services 2) development of trans-specific prevention and health programs.

Sindicato de Trabajadoras Domésticas y Oficios Varios Transgeneras (Nicaragua)Sindicato de Trabajadoras Domésticas y Oficios Varios Transgeneras (SITRADOVTRANS) was established in 2015 as a trade union organization for trans women in Nicaragua. Their mission is to generate resilience as a process to strengthen the community, advance and transform their environment, generate changes through public policies and promote community participation to ensure a full life for their community. SITRADOVTRANS will strengthen the organization and its associations through the empowerment of 30 trans women who will become labour and human rights leaders. They will also raise visibility and run awareness campaigns, advocate for public labor policy change and develop resources.

T-Action (Russia)T-Action was formed in 2014 as a response to the deteriorating situation of transgender people in Russia. T-Action’s mission is to work to increase the capacity of transgender people, to empower the T-community, to raise awareness in society in all the issues related to transgender experiences and to ensure the accessibility of medical care. Through their efforts and with the help of their allies, they are creating conditions for a dignified and comfortable life for trans people. T-Action will provide community and social support, conduct events that promote awareness and visibility, deliver trainings on trans sensitivity to lawyers and journalists and give consultations on HIV and sexual health with express testing for trans people.

Trans Coalition in the Post-Soviet Space (Post-Soviet region)Trans Coalition is a post-soviet trans network formed in 2013 by trans activists from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Ukraine and other countries. Their mission is to improve the quality of life for trans people in post-soviet countries by means of capacity building, advocacy activities with the aim to defend the rights and freedoms of transgender people, support for the trans movement, increasing awareness about trans people on the local and international levels as well as accumulation of a research base about transgender issues. The Trans Coalition will engage in capacity-building for the community, provide assistance to the trans movement and initiate and accumulate a research base on trans issues.

Trans Wellness Project (South Africa)The Trans Wellness Project is an organization formed in 2015 in South Africa. Their mission is to transform lives by advancing health, wellness and equality. They focus their efforts in rural areas; offering access to healthcare, psychosocial support, edutainment and training of all local healthcare professionals and the trans community itself. The Trans Wellness Project will train community representatives in all provinces of South Africa, with a focus on rural areas, as Community Educators who will advocate for the human rights of trans and gender non-conforming people and establish support groups and safe space groups. They will deliver training in these communities on sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) issues and the human rights of trans and gender non-conforming people when accessing community services. In addition, they plan to open an office and will engage in organizational development and Board development.

Trans(forming) (United States)Trans(forming) was formed in 2007 in Atlanta, United States. It is a grassroots intergenerational membership based organization led by and for trans, gender non-conforming and intersex people of color who were female assigned at birth. They are one of the oldest racial justice trans organizations that are working towards the liberation of communities and transforming institutions of oppression in society. They work mostly around civil rights for trans, gender non-conforming and intersex people of color. They work on intersections like detention and disabilities. Trans(forming) will expand their name change project into an all document project, which will support trans, gender non-conforming and intersex people to change any documents necessary including name change, immigration, etc. They will also enhance the Transforming Prison Project, which supports trans and gender non-conforming people in prisons in Georgia with medical support and advocating for a change of policies relating to trans prisoner’s rights.

TransAction (Pakistan)TransAction was formed in 2015 in Pakistan. The mission of TransAction to make Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Federally Administrated Tribal Areas (FATA) a safe and tolerant place for the transgender, intersex and gender non-conforming individuals through education and social advocacy for the empowerment of all trans and gender non-conforming people in every aspect of society and actively oppose discriminatory acts. Their work is to promote awareness, visibility and cultural and legal acceptance of people with alternative sexual orientations and gender identities. They will focus on raising awareness of the issues concerning transgender people in KP and cultivate a supportive, empowering and non-judgmental environment, provide reporting mechanism and create a database of violence against the transgender community. They will also conduct a trend analysis of these cases which will serve as basis of future advocacy and can be presented as a model for other provinces and bring the public, media and policy maker’s attention to end the culture of impunity.

Traveschile (Chile)Traveschile is a trans feminist group formed in 1999 in Chile. They work in the region of Santiago and two other community areas. Their mission is to defend the rights of trans elderly persons on the streets and involved in sex work including ensuring right to health, self-determination and education. They are working towards achieving dignified lives for elderly trans people. They will construct a mausoleum where they can house the bodies of trans elderly that have passed on.

Anonymous (China)This group has requested that their name and work not be published.

Yucatrans (Mexico)Yucatrans is a community based trans feminine group of Mayan descent started in 2008 in the Yuca region of Mexico. Their mission is to promote the access of rights to trans persons with the aim of improving their living conditions and to achieve a just, equitable and equal society for trans women and trans men. They seek to develop the leadership skills of trans women through training which will lead to a network in this region which will work to prevent and expose infringement of rights. Yucatrans will also engage in organizational development and provide the trans community with access to healthcare by bringing trans health specialists to this region.